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Category: Anna James

As the year comes to a close, many in the book blogging and reviewing community, and the book community in general – radio shows, podcasts, authors – have been posting and recording about this. And let me tell you, it is hard, and often, so many good ones are left off, and to me, ranking them is just mean because how can you rank books? Especially all those ones that stayed with you.

I had hoped 2019 might be easier to start with – not only do I have the list with me now, but for 2010-2019 I need to go back into other lists and hope I have those records. Or at least be able to work out what books I read that were published between those dates. 2019 seems to be the easiest place to start – as I have that list easily at hand for now. Out of 196 read so far, I found fourteen I loved – and the majority are by Australian women. Of course, these are in no particular order of favouritism, simply the order I read them throughout the year as that was easier to copy across.

Even though we still have two weeks left in December, I’m trying to get as many of these posts ready as possible – with my full wrap up posts appearing at the very end of the month or early in the new year, as well as the start of all my reading challenges in 2020 as well.

Choosing best of lists is always hard – there are often so many good books, but this year I went with the ones that stood out for me. Some that did were published earlier than 2019 and will possibly make it onto the 2010-2019 list – which of course, is bound to be longer and have entire series on there as I simply cannot choose only one from each year. It feels like a betrayal to a whole series to do that!

I made it to 170 books overall in October, with nineteen read during the month. I completed Book Bingo, almost completed my PopSugar challenge – with one category to go, and have more than surpassed my Australian Women Writer’s Challenge – with ten books read for this challenge this month.

Most books have been reviewed – the exception of linked content is for a blog tour that is coming out on early next week and shall be linked up then. I have included as many images of books as possible as well. The other review that needs to be linked is only out in a couple of weeks, and will be linked then.

A book written by a musician (fiction or nonfiction): Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills

A book you think should be turned into a movie: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

A book with at least one million ratings on Goodreads: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling – 20th Anniversary House Editions

A book with a plant in the title or on the cover: Bella Donna: Coven Road by Ruth Symes, Eliza Rose by Lucy Worsley

A reread of a favourite book: Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth

A book about a hobby: The Bad Mother’s Book Club by Keris Stanton

A book you meant to read in 2018: Eliza Rose by Lucy Worsley

A book with POP, SUGAR, or CHALLENGE in the title: Poppy Field by Michael Morpurgo, Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers

A book with an item of clothing or accessory on the cover: 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne, The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer

A book inspired by myth/legend/folklore: Mermaid Holidays: The Magic Pearl by Delphine Davis and Adele K Thomas

A book published posthumously: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

A book you see someone reading on TV or in a movie: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

A retelling of a classic: Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets (Enola Holmes #3) by Nancy Springer

A book with a question in the title: Is It Night or Day? by Fern Schumer Chapman

A book set on college or university campus: Marvel Rising: Squirrel Girl and Ms Marvel by Devin Grayson, Ryan North and Willow Wilson

A book about someone with a superpower: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Volume One: Squirrel Power by Ryan North

A book told from multiple POVs: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

A book set in space: Captain Marvel: Higher, Faster, Further by Kelly Sue DeConnick

A book by two female authors: The Silver Well by Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins, While You Were Reading by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus

A book with SALTY, SWEET, BITTER, or SPICY in the title: Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams

A book set in Scandinavia: The Wolf and the Watchman by Niklas Natt och Dag

A book that takes place in a single day: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson

A debut novel: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson

A book that’s published in 2019: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni

A book featuring an extinct or imaginary creature: Dragon Masters: Treasure of the Gold Dragon by Tracey West

A book recommended by a celebrity you admire: Split edited by Lee Kofman – recommended by Myf Warhurst

A book with LOVE in the title: With Love from Miss Lily by Jackie French (short story)

A book featuring an amateur detective: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill

A book about a family: The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion

A book by an author from Asia, Africa, or South America: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim

A book with a zodiac sign or astrology term in title: The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames

A book that includes a wedding: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer, Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, A Dream of Italy by Nicky Pellegrino

A book by an author whose first and last names start with the same letter: Mermaid Holidays: The Talent Show by Delphine Davis and Adele K. Thomas, The True Story of Maddie Bright by Mary-Rose MacColl, Explorer’s Academy: Nebula Secret by Trudi Trueit

A ghost story: The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay

A book with a two-word title: Saving You by Charlotte Nash

A novel based on a true story: The Familiars by Stacey Halls – The Pendle Witches

A book revolving around a puzzle or game: Deltora Quest #1 by Emily Rodda

Your favourite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading challenge:

2016 – A book based on a fairy tale: The Blue Rose by Kate Forsyth – based on Chinese fairy tale, The Blue Rose

2017 – A steampunk book: The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

Prompt:

Advanced

A “cli-fi” (climate fiction) book: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble, Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson

A “choose-your-own-adventure” book: Choose Your Own Adventure #2: Journey Under the Sea by R.A. Montgomery

An “own voices” book: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim

Read a book during the season it is set in: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson (Easter Season),The Shelly Bay Ladies Swimming Circle by Sophie Green (parts are set during Autumn), While You Were Reading by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus (Winter), The Unforgiving City by Maggie Joel (Winter)

A LitRPG book:

A book with no chapters / unusual chapter headings / unconventionally numbered chapters: Kensy and Max: Undercover by Jacqueline Harvey (Ciphers used to give the chapter headings)

Two books that share the same title: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda

Two books that share the same title: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda

A book that has inspired a common phrase or idiom: Aladdin and the Arabian Nights – Open Sesame

A book set in an abbey, cloister, monastery, vicarage, or convent: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

AWW2019

The Glimme by Emily Rodda -Reviewed

The Orange Grove by Kate Murdoch – Reviewed

Weapon by Lynette Noni – Reviewed

Total Quack Up Again by Sally Rippin and Adrian Beck – Reviewed

The Starthorn Tree by Kate Forsyth – Reviewed

With Love from Miss Lily by Jackie French (short story) – Reviewed

The Lily in the Snow by Jackie French – Reviewed

Christmas Lilies by Jackie French – Reviewed

The Wildkin’s Curse by Kate Forsyth – Reviewed

The Starkin Crown by Kate Forsyth – Reviewed

Book bingo

Rows Across:

Row One: BINGO

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

A novel that has more than 500 pages: Rebel Women who Changed Australia by Susanna de Vries, The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

A novella no more than 150 pages: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Synopsis: A magical adventure to delight the imagination. The curl-up-on-the-sofa snuggle of a series from a uniquely talented author.

Tilly Pages is a bookwanderer; she can travel inside books, and even talk to the characters she meets there. But Tilly’s powers are put to the test when fairytales start leaking book magic and causing havoc . . .

On a wintery visit to Paris, Tilly and her best friend Oskar bravely bookwander into the land of fairytales to find that characters are getting lost, stories are all mixed-up, and mysterious plot holes are opening without warning. Can Tilly work out who, or what, is behind the chaos so everyone gets their happily-ever-after?

The second enthralling tale in the bestselling PAGES & CO series.

~*~

Picking up a few weeks after the events of Tilly and the Bookwanderers, where Tilly’s mother returned, after being trapped in the pages of A Little Princess. As Bea adjusts to being back in her daughter’s life, the Underlibrarian, Amelia Whisper, is ousted and a new Underlibrarian, who wishes to create more authoritarian rules in the book wandering world, without thinking about how it will affect anyone, starts imposing his power. So just before Christmas, Tilly and her friend, Oskar, head to Paris to spend a few days with Oskar’s father. While there, Clara, Oskar’s grandmother, takes them to her friend’s bookstore: The Faery Cabinet, owned by another bookwanderer, Gretchen Stein.

While there, Tilly and Oskar bookwander into a book of fairytales, where they discover a world fracturing and their book magic is leaking, causing havoc in the fictional world. After returning home, they discover an untoward plot to change fairytales and book magic. In an attempt to plug all the plot holes appearing, Tilly and Oskar will do whatever they can to find out who is behind it – but will they make it home for everyone’s happily ever after?

I started reading this series earlier this year and was hooked from the first chapter of the first book. I have loved it since discovering it, and with each book, a new library, and a new facet of literature and books is explored. Tilly’s favourite books are woven in again – especially Anne of Green Gables and The Secret Garden as she reconnects with her mother and her family works to reunite and maintain their love of books.

The magic in these stories are in their simplicity of the themes of family and reading, layered with the complexities of how different people react to books, words and the power of reading and words, and how they affect us or what they mean to us, whether spoken or written, and what each of these books means to each person who reads it.

Tilly and the Lost Fairy Tales delves further into the history and mythology or book wandering, and who can do it and how, and reveals more secrets about Oskar and other characters that were hinted at in the first book, but left to the imagination – now we have our answers to this, but still await explanations about why Tilly can take things out of the books she wanders in, but nobody else can – this is a mystery that will be fun to uncover in the coming books.

Readers of all ages and genders will love this series – and they are the kinds of books that can be devoured or savoured, or both, and one that I will eagerly be anticipating the next release of – seeing as I managed to pick up this one just after it had been placed on the shelf in my local bookstore! Looking forward to more adventures with Tilly and Oskar in the future.

Seven months into the year, and in total, I have read 118 books. Of those 118, 58 have been by Australian Women, and the remaining 60 by authors across the board – male, female and international. I am still trying to make progress on my Jane Austen challenge and have one square left to tick off for book bingo – a book over 500 pages. Many of my reads this year have fallen short of this, so I am still looking and hoping something in my own collection will come up.

Most of the books have been reviewed, with a few exceptions for books read for work or Squirrel Girl and Captain Marvel. Some reviewed books have not been released yet, so the links will be included in later wrap ups or maybe added to this one when they go live. I read 25 books in July, and have managed to stay on top of a lot of my reading as well.

A book written by a musician (fiction or nonfiction): Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills

A book you think should be turned into a movie: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

A book with at least one million ratings on Goodreads:Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling – 20th Anniversary House Editions

A book with a plant in the title or on the cover: Bella Donna: Coven Road by Ruth Symes, Eliza Rose by Lucy Worsley

A reread of a favourite book: Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth

A book about a hobby: The Bad Mother’s Book Club by Keris Stanton

A book you meant to read in 2018: Eliza Rose by Lucy Worsley

A book with POP, SUGAR, or CHALLENGE in the title: Poppy Field by Michael Morpurgo, Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers

A book with an item of clothing or accessory on the cover: 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne, The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer

A book inspired by myth/legend/folklore:Mermaid Holidays: The Magic Pearl by Delphine Davis and Adele K Thomas

A book published posthumously: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

A book you see someone reading on TV or in a movie:

A retelling of a classic: Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets (Enola Holmes #3) by Nancy Springer

A book with a question in the title: Is It Night or Day? by Fern Schumer Chapman

A book set on college or university campus: Marvel Rising: Squirrel Girl and Ms Marvel by Devin Grayson, Ryan North and Willow Wilson

A book about someone with a superpower: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Volume One: Squirrel Power by Ryan North

A book told from multiple POVs: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

A book set in space: Captain Marvel: Higher, Faster, Further by Kelly Sue DeConnick

A book by two female authors: The Silver Well by Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins

A book with SALTY, SWEET, BITTER, or SPICY in the title: Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams

A book set in Scandinavia: The Wolf and the Watchman by Niklas Natt och Dag

A book that takes place in a single day: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson

A debut novel: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson

A book that’s published in 2019: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni

A book featuring an extinct or imaginary creature: Dragon Masters: Treasure of the Gold Dragon by Tracey West

A book recommended by a celebrity you admire: Split edited by Lee Kofman – recommended by Myf Warhurst

A book with LOVE in the title:

A book featuring an amateur detective: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill

A book about a family: The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion

A book by an author from Asia, Africa, or South America: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim

A book with a zodiac sign or astrology term in title:The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames

A book that includes a wedding: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer, Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, A Dream of Italy by Nicky Pellegrino

A book by an author whose first and last names start with the same letter:Mermaid Holidays: The Talent Show by Delphine Davis and Adele K. Thomas, The True Story of Maddie Bright by Mary-Rose MacColl, Explorer’s Academy: Nebula Secret by Trudi Trueit

A ghost story: The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay

A book with a two-word title: Saving You by Charlotte Nash

A novel based on a true story: The Familiars by Stacey Halls – The Pendle Witches

A book revolving around a puzzle or game: Deltora Quest #1 by Emily Rodda

Your favourite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading challenge:

2016 – A book based on a fairy tale: The Blue Rose by Kate Forsyth – based on Chinese fairy tale, The Blue Rose

2017 – A steampunk book:

Advanced

A “cli-fi” (climate fiction) book: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble, Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson

A “choose-your-own-adventure” book: Choose Your Own Adventure #2: Journey Under the Sea by R.A. Montgomery

An “own voices” book: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim

Read a book during the season it is set in: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson (Easter Season),The Shelly Bay Ladies Swimming Circle by Sophie Green (parts are set during Autumn)

A LitRPG book:

A book with no chapters / unusual chapter headings / unconventionally numbered chapters: Kensy and Max: Undercover by Jacqueline Harvey (Ciphers used to give the chapter headings)

Two books that share the same title: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda

Two books that share the same title: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda

A book that has inspired a common phrase or idiom: Aladdin and the Arabian Nights – Open Sesame

A book set in an abbey, cloister, monastery, vicarage, or convent: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

AWW2019

The Silver Well by Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins – Reviewed

Blood and Circuses by Kerry Greenwood (Phryne Fisher #6) – Reviewed

Deltora Quest: The Maze of the Beast by Emily Rodda – Reviewed

Deltora Quest: The Valley of the Lost by Emily Rodda – Reviewed

Deltora Quest: Return to Del by Emily Rodda – Reviewed

Deltora Quest #1 by Emily Rodda – Reviewed

Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French – Reviewed

Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail – Reviewed

55.Where the Dead Go by Sarah Bailey – Reviewed

Firewatcher #1: Brimstone by Kelly Gardiner – Reviewed

The Burnt Country by Joy Rhoades – Reviewed

The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus – Reviewed

Book Bingo

Rows Across:

Row One:

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

A novel that has more than 500 pages:

A novella no more than 150 pages:Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Synopsis: A magical adventure to delight the imagination. Eleven-year-old Tilly has lived above her grandparents’ bookshop ever since her other disappeared shortly after she was born. Like the rest of her family, Tilly loves nothing more than to escape into the pages of her favourite stories. One day Tilly realises that classic children’s characters are appearing in the shop through the magic of ‘book wandering’ – crossing over from the page into real life. With the help of Anne of Green Gables and Alice in Wonderland, Tilly is determined to solve the mystery of what happened to her mother all those years ago, so she bravely steps into the unknown, unsure of what adventure lies ahead and what dangers she may face.
~*~

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of books that take place in bookshops or libraries, or both – aimed at all age groups and as a book lover and weekly visitor to my local bookstore, I am loving these books and feel right at home in them. Tilly and the Bookwanderers is exactly this kind of book.

Tilly has lived with her grandparents her whole life, ever since her mother, Beatrice, disappeared shortly after she was born. All she has left is a necklace with a bee, and a few stories. While on mid-term break, she discovers a box of her mother’s old books while helping her friend, Oskar, find a book for their school holiday reading. One day she bumps into Alice from Alice in Wonderland and Anne of Green Gables in Pages and Co. Bookshop, and soon she is drawn into their books and others, and the mystery of her mother’s disappearance all those years ago, unsure of what is to come.

Living above a bookstore is an ideal scenario for any reader, and Tilly always surrounded by books, which is where the mystery starts. Throughout the book, she encounters characters from many classic works, including Lizzy from Pride and Prejudice and Sherlock Holmes. There were many things I loved about this book, from the setting, in a uniquely delightful bookstore that I would love to be able to visit beyond the page, the magic of reading, and the Underlibrary, and the ability to meet characters in the books I read.

In a way, we all wander through the books we read, disappearing into their worlds for hours on end, and often feeling like we are part of that world. While in the real world, we often feel like everything melts away as we read and we enter the worlds of Hogwarts, or Lyra’s Oxford, or many of the fictional worlds and settings we visit – real or imagined (and sometimes a combination), Tilly is able to draw herself into these worlds.

Perhaps it seems a bit much to have bookstores and libraries featuring so prominently in books, but for me, there is definitely something enjoyable about this – it allows people who adore these kinds of books to see a world they inhabit daily but in a fantastical and relatable way. The bookshop and books become more than just the setting – they become characters that enrich the book and narrative, and make the reader want to dive into the worlds of the books in the novel, as well as the novel itself. It was a feeling I had, and it is definitely one that permeates my reading, and makes Tilly’s adventures magical and wonderfully written, and I am very keen to read the second book when it comes out.

What is lovely about this book and its idea of book wandering is that one does not lose the ability when they become an adult or hit puberty – people of all ages can book wander, and all in this series have to deal with Enoch Chalk, who I am sure will appear in future books as he creates havoc in his quest against Tilly and her family. Another great start to a new series I am sure will be savoured and loved.